BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois teachers will experience agriculture firsthand and enhance student learning related to food, agri-science and STEM agriculture careers thanks to grant funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom Agricultural Academy: Integrating Agri Science program was recently awarded $120,000 to conduct 100 multiple day trainings over the next four years.
The IAA Foundation, which serves in a fundraising capacity for Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom, successfully secured the grant on the program’s behalf.
“Agricultural academies are an impactful and creative way to provide agricultural literacy training, curriculum development and enhancement,” said Kevin Daugherty, education director for IAITC. “The goal is to provide K-8 teachers with the tools and skillsets necessary to enhance student learning in the areas of food and agricultural sciences.”
Topics introduced include technologies in consumer marketing, agriculture production, product processing food sciences, biotechnology, horticultural sciences, communications and marketing.
Twenty-five multiple day training sessions and field trips are conducted annually and attended by approximately 500 educators who leave with increased knowledge and confidence to teach subjects in food and agricultural sciences, as well as STEM integration. Through career exploration, educators gain a clearer understanding of job opportunities available in food and agriculture sciences.
“Each year we seek to fully fund a program of work for IAITC,” said IAA Foundation Director Susan Moore. “This means securing close to $800,000 annually to ensure resources remain available at no cost to teachers and that county ag literacy programs can successfully reach more than 660,000 students each year.
“Training teachers to utilize these great educational resources in the classroom allows even more students the opportunity to grow and learn through agriculture.”